Geocaching 2020
The year 2020 was a lot of things but for Team JD it was a record Geocaching year.
By Geocache Method
The year 2020 was anything but normal; we found new ways to work, connect, and for some of us, continue doing what we love geocaching. Geocaching was our one salvation during this pandemic. For my caching buddy and I, geocaching was our escape from the pandemic and allowed us to spend some quality time together.
The first three months were filled with incredible trips and plenty of “geocaching goodness”. Here is a review of our very unusual year of Gecocaching.
January started off like a champ with my annual trip to San Diego. I am very fortunate to travel frequently for work and geocaching is a great way for me to get out of the hotel before or after the work day. While in San Diego, I was able to do some amazing geocaching all over the city and always find time to visit the beautiful Balboa Park.
The highlight of my SoCal trip was the delightful day I spent geocaching with Team Podcacher. As a fan of the Podcacher podcast, I was honored to meet the show hosts. We explored a really neat Earth Cache in an interesting sea cave and also took in an Adventure lab featuring the beautiful La Jolla coastline. Discover the Geocaching Goodness with Team Podcacher.
February included a quick trip to Orlando on a special work assignment. I was able to spend a fun morning geocaching with my sister and we explored the charming town Celebration, Florida. Two of my favorite caches logged on this trip were virtual geocaches. The first can actually be found inside the Orlando International Airport and the second is in a park just minutes from the airport grounds. If you ever fly in our out of Orlando International Airport don’t miss these very fun virtual caches.
My geocaching adventures were about to take me down under to the other side of the globe. I have been to Australia before but this was my first visit since I began caching! During my trip to Melbourne, I logged 19 caches and set several new milestones including:
Find Furthest East – Photograph This GC29BQK
Find Furthest South- Yes, But Is It Art? GC J8HP
Extended my Find Farthest from Home at 9669.746 miles, Ye Olde Skool GC66DD7
Shortly after returning from Australia, we started to learn new of disease, a novel Coronavirus which we would soon come to know as COVID-19. But there is no rest for the weary and my next trip would take me to one of my favorite places. Honolulu, Hawaii!
To make this trip even more special, I decided to plan a geocaching event during this trip. The event was scheduled for Sunday, 15 March and was to be a Pre-St Patrick’s Day Sunset Event Cache. I had researched the perfect location on Waikiki Beach overlooking the Pacific with the Diamond Head Crater in the background.
Fast forward to 13 March, COVID19 was raging and everything was starting to shut down. My company initiated a travel ban just two days before my flight and it seemed that my caching event in paradise would be cancelled. If you want to know what happened next, read – COVID cannot contain these clever cachers.
Stuck at home, we set out to build the Adventure Lab that I had been awarded by Geocaching HQ. Working with Chicago’s North Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau we turned our Geocaching interests to our own neighborhood. We created our first Adventure Lab – I Love a Parade Adventure Lab
GEOCACHING STREAK
The highlight of this crazy year was definitely our caching streak. In Illinois, we were on a stay at home order which allowed us to leave the house to exercise outdoors which included walking and biking. We agreed that geocaching was outdoor exercise and we would take precautions to stay safe and get out of the house. Before we knew it, our daily caching outings had extended all summer for 183 days. Read about our streaking adventures and other milestones.
TO SUM IT UP 2020 BY THE NUMBERS
9669 miles – Furthest from home
1,778 total finds
751 finds in 366 days
183 Day Streak
67 Adventure Lab Caches
45 Caches Best day of caching
Geocache Method is dedicated to the amazing people and places that I discover while Geocaching. Finding the hidden geocache is only half of the fun. Discovering new places is the real treasure!
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